Four Comicons This Weekend & More
There are no record conventions but memorabilia collectors should note that there are four Comicon events this weekend, two of which will last on both Saturday and Sunday in Calgary, Alberta and Kelowna, British Columbia. And one video gaming event in Hamilton, Ontario.
The first two day event will be Brick Fest Live, a touring Lego event that will be held at the BMO Center in Stampede Park on the 22nd and 23rd of June, 2024.
Admission information is available by clicking here. And the venue is next to the Victoria Park/Stampede Station, which is serviced by Calgary Transit.
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The second two day event will be the Kelowna Comicon at MNP Place, also on June 22nd and 23rd, 2024.
Multiple passes are available, including free passes for kids 12 and under, and information on admission is available by clicking here. Multiple routes and stops service this via through BC Transit.
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The first single day event this weekend, the Bowmanville Comicon, will be on Saturday, the 22nd of June 2024 in the Garnet B. Rickard Recreation Complex from 10am to 3pm.
Admission will be $5 or free for kids 12 and under. And the venue is serviced by both Go Transit, with bus stop numbers 100520 and 100716, and Durham Region Transit, bus stop numbers 93733 and 93734.
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The second single day event this weekend will be the Hamilton Game Swap, a free event for video gamers that will be hosted by the Calvin Christian School from 11am to 3pm.
The nearest bus stops to the venue are 2904 and 2928, which is serviced by Route 35 on HSR.
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The third and last event for this weekend will be the Belleville Comicon at the Masonic Temple from 10am to 3pm on Sunday, the 23rd of June, 2024.
Admission will be $5 or free for kids 12 and under. And the venue is serviced by routes 5A and 5B on Belleville Transit.
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Canadians To Pay For Music Previews ?
Starting tomorrow the Supreme Court of Canada will hear appeals in regards to royalty payments for music previews and music in video games.
The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada wants royalties every time someone clicks on one of those short previews when they Shop on iTunes, eMusic
, etc, and had appealed an October 18th, 2007 Copyright Board of Canada decision stating that these qualifies as “fair dealing”.
Unfortunately for the consumer many retailers have decided to drop previews because of this case, including Amazon.ca, and if the Supreme Court rules in their favor previews might be removed on most sites because the royalties would be quite prohibitive.
A ruling establishing royalties on previews could also set a precedent that could hinder film previews and trailers in Canada. But I am hoping the previous Copyright Board of Canada decision will stand.
Previews are not purchases but research to which the end result might be a legitimate purchase. And without previews, people will think twice about making a purchase, so it is counterproductive.
Then there’s the fact that this ruling would not apply to foreign sites, where previews are accessible by Canadians. And any attempt to collect royalties for previews from these foreign sites would be problematic because of their national “fair dealing” exemptions.
Apple and Canada’s largest telecom companies are of course fighting this appeal. The Canadian Recording Industry Association had also opposed royalties on previews so I am guessing that their modern counterpart, Music Canada, also oppose them.